The History of President’s Day

President’s Day dates back to 1800, a year after President George Washington’s death. The deceased leader’s birthday, February 22, became an unofficial day of national remembrance. In the late 1870s, Senator Stephen Wallace Dorsey of Arkansas proposed making the late president’s birthday a federal holiday. In 1879, President Hayes made it an official holiday. The measure only applied to the District of Columbia at first, but was expanded nationally in 1885. In the late 1960s, the proposed Uniform Monday Holiday Act sought to change the dates of celebration for several federal holidays to a series of predetermined Mondays. The proposal was viewed as a way to create more three-day weekends for workers and as a way to increase retail shopping opportunities. The proposal also included a provision to combine the celebration of Washington’s birthday with that of President Abraham Lincoln, who was born on February 12th. The provision was dropped, but the rest of the Uniform Monday Holiday Act was passed in 1968 and took effect in 1971. The celebration of Washington’s birthday was shifted from the actual date (February 22) to the third Monday in February. Columbus Day, Memorial Day, and Veterans Day were also affected, although changes to Veterans Day were later rolled back due to backlash from veterans and the civilian public alike. Because the celebration of Washington’s birthday was moved away from the February 22 date, many people believed the holiday was meant to honor Lincoln as well, since the new day of observance always fell in between their two birthdays. Marketers began advertising “President’s Day” sales and by the mid-1980s, many Americans no longer thought of the federal holiday in February as Washington’s Birthday, but rather as President’s Day. By the early 2000s, roughly half of the states had changed the holiday’s name to President’s Day on their official calendars. (Notably, the federal government still lists the holiday as Washington’s Birthday.) President’s Day is celebrated on the third Monday in February; it will be observed on February 17th in 2025.